Harvest Salad

This Fall Harvest salad is perfect for Fall as its name suggests and a great all year-round salad and perfect for lunch, or as a side dish for your next dinner party, family dinner or any event you are entertaining. It goes with just about any protein or on its own especially if you decide to add a grain to the salad for a heartier spin. Fresh salad greens of your choice tossed and topped with crispy diced apples, roasted sweet potatoes and carrots, candied pecans, pomegranate seeds/arils or dried cranberries, tangy feta cheese, red onion, and finally drizzled with a quick and easy lemony maple Dijon dressing.

Harvest Salad Ingredients:

• LETTUCE GREENS: You can literally use whatever salad greens you like - use Romaine lettuce, spring mix, red leaf lettuce, baby spinach or baby kale, baby arugula or do a blend of a few. You will need approximately 6 cups of salad greens of choice.
• VEGETABLES FOR ROASTING: The roasted veggie medley I usually use for this salad includes: 1 large sweet potato or 2 small to medium sized ones (I used a small regular one and a small purple sweet potato), and 3 large carrots (I used rainbow carrots but any variety works). To roast the veggies you will need: olive oil, fresh or dried thyme, garlic powder and salt and pepper to taste. Feel free to swap out either veggie for butternut squash or even Brussel sprouts of feel free to do a medley.
• POMEGRANATE: I love the pop of color and flavor that pomegranate seeds/arils add to the salad but you could also swap them out for dried cranberries or other dried fruit like dried cherries or even craisins or raisins.
• RED ONION: I think it’s a must to add to the salad but you can substitute with white onion if that is all you have or shallots.
• APPLE: I love the crispy juicy crunch that diced apples add to the salad - I like to use a honeycrisp apple but any variety will work. If you prefer to add pear you can swap out the apple for diced pear or use half of each.
• FETA CHEESE: Feta is the perfect salty briny add in but you can also use your favorite crumbled cheese such as goat cheese, blue cheese or Gorgonzola cheese. If you prefer you can also use grated Parmesan cheese instead.
• CANDIED PECANS: Use store bought or homemade candied pecans. If you prefer to use regular pecans I recommend toasting them lightly for a little crunch. The candied nuts add a sweet crunch to this salad. Add as many as you like to the salad and feel free to swap the pecans with walnuts if you prefer. If you prefer to use walnuts or almonds or add in some pumpkin seeds you can or you can even do a blend of nuts and seeds
• OPTIONAL ADD INS: Feel free to add extra veggies like red bell pepper, cucumbers, chopped celery, sliced avocado or even broccoli. You can even add in some protein to the salad like adding some chickpeas, or leftover roasted or grilled chicken. Feel free to add some grains to make this salad even heartier - like cooked quinoa, cooked farro, cooked wild rice or even wheat berries. Another great add in is cooked crumbled crispy bacon.
• THE DRESSING: You will need olive oil, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, maple syrup, minced garlic, dried thyme, and salt and pepper to taste. This combination makes for a delicious dressing for this salad. Of course you can swap out the cider vinegar for balsamic vinegar, the maple syrup for honey and dijon mustard for prepared mustard too - switch things up according to taste - that goes for the thyme. I like to use thyme but you can use any herb you like - sage or rosemary is also nice with the roasted vegetables.
  
  

How to Make This Delicious Harvest Salad:

1. Roast Sweet Potatoes & Carrots: Toss the chopped veggies with a little olive oil, salt, pepper garlic powder, thyme and roast until golden and tender, set aside to cool. You can also toss them with 1-2 teaspoons of maple syrup for some caramelization.
2. Make Salad Dressing: Whisk all the dressing ingredients together in a bowl or shake in a jar. We want to make the dressing first so it has time to chill and the flavors to marry if possible.
3. Assemble Salad: Toss Salad ingredients together in a large bowl. Drizzle and toss salad with dressing if you are eating it right away or serve salad with dressing on the side.
   
   

Harvest Salad Storage & Make Ahead

• Storage: Undressed salad can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for a couple of days. Dressed salad is best eaten fresh otherwise the leftovers will get soggy.
• Make Ahead: You can make the the dressing, roast the sweet potatoes and carrots ahead of time, and prep the ingredients (except for the apple due to browning), When ready to serve, chop up an apple, assemble the salad, and toss with the dressing.
  
  

More Fall/Winter Salads You Will Love:

• Roasted Butternut Squash Salad
• Apple Walnut Salad
• Beet Salad
• Waldorf Salad
• Roasted Butternut Squash Kale And Farro Salad With A Za’atar Dressing